Walking With Anthony

An evening of hope, impact & possibility. Newport Beach’s premier philanthropic night.

Date 10 . 16 . 2026
Doors 6 to 11 PM
Venue Balboa Bay Club, Newport Beach
Our Mission

Forever changing the recovery outcome of spinal cord injury.

Walking With Anthony funds the therapy that insurance does not, helping survivors regain independence and get their lives back. Insurance stops. We don’t.

Walking With Anthony in action at the 2025 Stand Up For A Cause event
WWA Warriors: the faces this work funds
20days
The Insurance Window

Insurance covers about twenty days of rehabilitation. Recovery from a spinal cord injury is a lifetime.

After the average covered window closes, families are left with the bill for years: physical therapy, equipment, in-home care, lost income. Walking With Anthony funds what insurance won’t.

What Isn’t Covered

The bill that follows long after the hospital sends them home.

After insurance coverage ends, the financial weight of a spinal cord injury lands on the family for years, often for life.

01

Lost Income

Earning potential cut short for survivors and the caregivers who step in.

02

Full-Time Caregiving

The true cost of round-the-clock care rarely makes it onto a single bill.

03

Ongoing Therapy

Years of recovery work, far beyond what any insurance window allows.

04

Equipment & Home

Wheelchairs, adaptive technology, and the home modifications they require.

Sources: Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation · NSCISC Facts & Figures

Timing Is Vital

After an injury, the brain and spinal cord enter a critical window. The sooner therapy begins, the more is possible.

Micki Purcell, President & Founder of Walking With Anthony
The right therapy at the right time is the difference between a life of isolation and a life of independence. Recovery can’t wait.
Micki PurcellPresident & Founder, Walking With Anthony
Survivors Move Again. Stand Again. Live Again.

Every dollar moves a survivor closer to independence.

Donor support is what closes the gap between hospital discharge and a life that’s livable again.

01

Rehab Grants

Funding the therapy windows that change the trajectory of a recovery.

02

Life-Changing Therapy

Access to cutting-edge facilities families could not otherwise afford.

03

Equipment & Care

Wheelchairs, exoskeletons, adaptive technology: the tools of daily life.

04

Recovery Outcomes

Independence and mobility restored. Dignity returned to the survivor and family.

Anthony & Micki Purcell
Founders · Anthony & Micki Purcell

One family’s fight for access to recovery, now a national mission.

Walking With Anthony was founded after Anthony Purcell’s spinal cord injury in 2010, when his mother Micki refused to accept that recovery had limits. What began as one family’s fight for access to rehabilitation has grown into a national nonprofit funding life-changing recovery for survivors who otherwise couldn’t afford it.

Real
Dollars
Real
Therapy
Real
Progress
Past Stand Up For A Cause events
The Evening

An evening of hope, impact & possibility. Newport Beach’s premier philanthropic night.

Schedule
  1. 6:00Red Carpet, Cocktails & Hors d’Oeuvres
  2. 7:00Program & Dinner
  3. 8:00Live Auction
  4. 9:00Live Music & Dancing
  5. 11:00Event Concludes
Notable Attendees
  • Peter T. Wilderotter
    Peter T. Wilderotter Former CEO, Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation
  • Ali Stroker
    Ali Stroker Actress & SCI Advocate
  • Adam Rogers
    Adam Rogers President & CEO, NervGen Pharma
  • Amy Van Dyken
    Amy Van Dyken 6× Olympic Gold Medalist & SCI Advocate
Program & Entertainment
  • Matt Rogers
    Matt Rogers The voice of Tennessee Titans & LIV Golf
  • Live61
    Live61 High-energy band blending live musicianship with DJ beats.
2025 Recap

The largest single-night fundraiser in Balboa Bay Resort history.

400+
Guests
20+
Corporate Sponsors
$700K
Raised
Year Over Year

Growing the Stand Up For A Cause movement.

From the first event to today, every year has expanded the work: more survivors funded, more therapy delivered, more lives changed.

  • 2023$300,000Raised
  • 2024$450,000Raised
  • 2025$700,000Raised
2026
$1.5M
Goal
Premier Sponsorships

Stand at the front of the room, and the cause.

From Presenting Partner to Fund-A-Need match, a full menu of premier, supporting, and underwriting opportunities. Every dollar funds survivor recovery.

The Presenting Partner shares the marquee on October 16th.

One partner. One position. One year of category exclusivity. The Presenting Partner underwrites 10+ rehab grants for survivors over the year that follows.

Presenting Partner · one available
$100,000
2 elite VIP tables · up to 24 guests
  • Event naming rights
  • Signature Champagne at table
  • First-position logo on all assets
  • Step-and-repeat premier visibility
  • On-stage speaking opportunity
  • Category exclusivity
  • First right of refusal for 2027
  • Media inclusion
  • Dedicated social recognition
  • Prominent website + e-blast placement
  • Premier on-site visibility
Impact: 10+ Rehab Grants · FMV $12,000 · Est. deductible $92,000
Premier Sponsorships

Four tiers, every one of them funding real rehab grants for survivors.

Hope · two available
$50,000
1 VIP table for 12 · + 4 additional tickets
  • Signature Champagne at table
  • Mission moment recognition during Fund-A-Need
  • Step-and-repeat visibility
  • Premium logo placement
  • Relevant media inclusion, social recognition, logo on event website, e-blast placement, and on-site visibility
  • Priority renewal for 2027
Impact: 5 Rehab Grants · FMV $8,000 · Deductible $42,000
Courage · four available
$25,000
1 VIP table · up to 10 guests
  • Champagne at table
  • Verbal recognition during program
  • Premium logo placement
  • Relevant media inclusion, social recognition, logo on event website, e-blast placement, and on-site visibility
Impact: 2.5 Rehab Grants · FMV $5,000 · Deductible $20,000
Impact
$15,000
1 premium table · up to 8 guests
  • Champagne at table
  • Logo placement
  • Relevant media inclusion, social recognition, logo on event website, e-blast placement, and on-site visibility
Impact: 1.5 Rehab Grants · FMV $4,000 · Deductible $11,000
Champion
$10,000
6 tickets at a premium table
  • Champagne at table
  • Logo placement
  • Relevant media inclusion, social recognition, logo on event website, e-blast placement, and on-site visibility
Impact: 1 Rehab Grant · FMV $3,000 · Deductible $7,000
Fund-A-Need Match

Lead the room by inspiring transformational giving.

Your commitment helps set the tone for the evening by matching the first gifts raised during our Bid From the Heart paddle raise, encouraging greater generosity and directly accelerating recovery for spinal cord injury survivors.

Fund-A-Need Match Sponsor · one available
$25,000+
Up to 4 VIP tickets
  • Event naming Matching Gift recognition during Live Fund-A-Need
  • On-stage recognition during paddle raise
  • Website + e-blast placement
  • Relevant media inclusion
  • Dedicated social recognition
  • On-site recognition
  • Premier on-site visibility
Impact: Bridges the gap between insurance limits and real recovery · FMV $2,000 · Est. deductible $23,000
Underwriting Opportunities

Brand presence woven directly into the experience.

Every underwriting sponsor receives on-site signage & visibility, relevant media inclusion, social recognition, logo on event website, and e-blast placement.

Entertainment
$15,000
Shoutout from the band & emcee · 4 tickets in premium seating
Bar
$12,500
Branded bar signage & napkins · 2 tickets in premium seating
Welcome
$10,000
Custom guest arrival experience · 2 tickets in premium seating
Photo Moment
$10,000
Branded photo booth backdrop · 2 tickets in premium seating
Floral
$10,000
Recognition on every table · 2 tickets in premium seating
Registration
$10,000
Branded check-in experience · 2 tickets in premium seating
Wine
$7,500
Logo on wine service · 2 tickets in premium seating
Cocktail
$7,500
Signature cocktail in your name · 2 tickets in premium seating
Printing
$7,500
Logo on printed materials · 100% deductible
Valet
$5,000
Branded valet signage · 100% deductible
Bid Paddle
$5,000
Logo on all paddles · 100% deductible
Last Bid
$5,000
Logo on the final moment of the live auction · 100% deductible

Champions of Hope

Every dollar goes directly to survivor recovery · 100% deductible
$25,000
Independence
$10,000
Recovery
$5,000
Progress
$2,500
Strength
$1,000
Advocate
2025 Sponsors

Last year’s partners who made the largest single-night fundraiser in Balboa Bay Resort history possible.

2025 Stand Up For A Cause sponsors

2026 sponsors will appear here as they’re confirmed.

Ways to Give

Beyond the gala, three ways to power recovery.

Auction

Donate a high-value experience.

This year’s event will feature a limited offering of high-value, unique auction items. If you’d like to participate, contact Tonya or submit an item below.

Fund a Rehab Grant

Become a Champion of Hope. Change a life. Restore hope.

More than 300,000 people in the U.S. live with spinal cord injuries, yet many lose access to therapy long before recovery is over. Insurance may stop, but recovery doesn’t. Your support helps provide continued rehabilitation, equipment, and hope when survivors need it most.

Give

Help now. Keep hope moving forward.

With your support, spinal cord injury survivors can continue critical recovery, rehabilitation, and care when insurance stops. Because recovery can’t wait.

Committee

The people behind the evening.

Event Directors
  • Anthony Purcell
  • Micki Purcell
  • Tonya Kowalczyk
Event Co-chairs
  • Krissey Nardecchia
  • John Moroney
Committee Members
  • Mary Jane Buenafe
  • Jordana Chapman
  • Jacqueline Fox
  • Michelle Goeden
  • Julie Gilman
  • Julie Hamilton
  • Dawn Ross Hickey
  • Lisa Iannini
  • Jackie Lamm
  • Libby Lawford
  • Karen Lederman
  • Abby Listo
  • Mary McCracken
  • Fran McKeever
  • Kristi McKnight
  • Jennifer Midgett
  • Christina Naranjo
  • Renee Nicholas
  • Andrea Ostrum
  • Ashley Quick
  • Kristi Rhodes
  • Lisa Spierings
  • Karen Purcell
  • Lisa Van Court
  • Lucille Wagner
  • Holli Winterhalter
RSVP

Reserve Your Seat.

Join us October 16, 2026 at the Balboa Bay Club in Newport Beach. Complete the form below to confirm your attendance.

Thank You

Stand With Us.

Reserve a sponsorship, host a table, or underwrite an experience. Every dollar you commit funds the therapy, the equipment, and the months of recovery that change a survivor’s life.

Contact tonya@walkingwithanthony.org
Direct 1 (888) 712-4992
10 . 16 . 2026 Balboa Bay Club · Newport Beach